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One of the most successful books in recent months has been “Skyfaring” by Mark Vanhoenacker – a pilot’s account of the wonders of flying. It’s just out in paperback and is currently number 2 in the Sunday Times chart, and it was a best-seller in hardback too. Mark took an MPhil in History at Selwyn in the 1990s, and he went on to become a British Airways pilot.

  

His book has received glowing reviews. The New York Times said it was “a superb chronicle of his career as an airline pilot… Mark Vanhoenacker makes jet travel seem uncanny and intriguing all over again, finding delight in clouds, airports, rainstorms, fuel loads, sky gates, fragments of jargon, lonely electric lights on the plain, suns that rise and set four times in a single daylong journey and the fanciful names of waypoints on flight maps.” It was also a Book Of The Week on BBC Radio 4.

Mark tells us he’s not alone as a Selwyn pilot. A few months ago he found himself sharing a cockpit with Mark Benterman (SE2005). “Two Selwyn Marks, piloting a 747 to Cape Town, what are the chances?”

The Royal Society has made one of its major awards to a former Selwyn student. Sophie Wilson, who is also an Honorary Fellow of the College, has jointly received The Mullard Award - which recognises outstanding scientific work that contributes to national prosperity in the United Kingdom. Ms Wilson, along with Professor Steve Furber, was cited for “their distinguished contributions to the design and analysis of the Acorn RISC Machine (ARM) microprocessor which is used in mobile phone and portable electronics world over”.

You can read the Royal Society’s news release here: https://royalsociety.org/grants-schemes-awards/awards/mullard-award/. ARM itself has been in the news this week after its £24bn takeover: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-36822806

Sophie Wilson studied at Selwyn in the late 1970s, and she was awarded an Honorary Fellowship in Spring 2016.

There were capacity audiences for two lectures given in the United States by Selwyn History Fellow, Dr David Smith, on the subject of “Cromwell: Hero or Villain?” The events were arranged by the college in association with Cambridge In America, which represents the university and all the colleges; and they took place in midtown Manhattan on Wednesday July 6^th and at the British Embassy in Washington the following night. Alumni from across the university attended the talks, and there were lively question and answer sessions after each lecture. Our photo shows the Washington event in the Embassy’s rotunda.

The Master of Selwyn, Roger Mosey, also spoke in both cities to introduce the lectures. He used the occasion to set out briefly the Cambridge response to the Brexit referendum result. He said:

"We meet here in what is clearly a challenging time back home in the UK. But the university and colleges of Cambridge have had 800 years' experience of dealing with what the world throws at us, and we have a policy of trying to emerge all the stronger.

"So there was a very clear message from a meeting I was at with the Vice-Chancellor and others Heads of House at the start of the month. We remain a global university with international connections that matter enormously to us - and those include, and will continue to include, the continent of Europe. It's business as usual. Cambridge will pursue its collaborations in Europe, in the Americas, in Asia and Africa: right around the world.

"It's particularly important that we help to lead the UK's commitment to science, because the best Cambridge minds can change all our lives for the better with their research. And across all fields, we want the brightest and best to come to us - irrespective of their nationality or background."

Selwyn Chapel was the centrepiece of our Family Day on July 2^nd when we were celebrating 40 years since the admission of women to the College. But the talking point was a cake, not the building. An edible model of Chapel was created by Carolyn Collins, mother of two Selwyn students; and the photograph below shows what an accurate rendition it was of the building.

Mrs Collins worked from photographs to achieve her astonishing level of detail. The finishing touches include an icing version of the college dog, YoYo, in one of her favourite positions on the Old Court lawn. The consensus among the guests on Saturday was that the cake was as delicious to eat as it was wonderful to look at – and we’re very grateful to Carolyn for her contribution to the success of the day.

Degrees were conferred on Selwyn students at a ceremony on Friday June 24^th. As is traditional, the students lined up in Old Court - watched by families and friends - ready for the walk to the Senate House.

Selwyn’s contingent managed to avoid the worst of the downpours that have hit Cambridge this week, though there was a light shower when the procession set off – and umbrellas were to hand.

See many more photos online in our Flickr album: https://www.flickr.com/photos/selalum/albums

The Master, Roger Mosey, sent this message to Selwyn students and staff on the morning of Friday June 24th.

“The vote by the UK to leave the European Union means we are now in a time of uncertainty. But I want to say something that is certain about Selwyn. We are a community that welcomes people from Britain, from the continent of Europe and from across the world. That will not change. We are multinational and diverse, and proud of it. We will never compromise on that.”

There are more updates on Brexit developments on the main Cambridge University website: href="https://www.cam.ac.uk/">https://www.cam.ac.uk/.

One of the best ways of choosing a University – or a college within Cambridge – is to make a visit; and Selwyn is inviting sixth-formers/year 12s to our Open Days and a Summer School.

The Open Days on June 30^th and July 1^st see events across Cambridge. You can find out what’s on offer at Selwyn by clicking here:

In August, we’ll be hosting a Summer School which is free for qualifying students. This year it covers the arts and humanities as well as sciences, with details here:

The College was delighted to hear about old members who featured in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list.

• Tim Stevens, former Bishop of Leicester, is awarded a CBE


• Dennis Gethin received an OBE for services to Welsh Rugby


• An OBE was also awarded to JP Burgon, chairman of the Outdoor Recreation Network


• There's an MBE for Jon Reynolds, founder of SwiftKey

We’re also pleased to report that our former Master, Sir David Harrison, is to
receive an Honorary Fellowship from Homerton College. Sir David was chairman of Homerton’s
Board of Trustees for the 30 years running up to the grant of the college’s Royal Charter.

Our congratulations to them all.

The Selwyn first men’s crew had a triumphant week in the Cambridge May Bumps, which took place from June 8^th to 11^th. They went up six places in the first division, starting with an over-bump --- overtaking two boats that had bumped and catching another one --- on the opening day. There was then a bump on each of the next three days, meaning that the crew have earned their blades. Huge congratulations to them all! Selwyn’s crew included our University Blue and Boat Race winner Felix Newman, and he is pictured below (4^th from left) with his colleagues.

The line-up was:

Cox: Will McDermott

Stroke: Felix Newman

7: Charlie Nye

6: Charlie Cullen

5: Robert Galbenu (C)

4: Marcos Gallego

3: Harry Prudden

2: Sam Pettinger-Harte

Bow: Nigel Coburn  

It was a much tougher week for our other men and women’s crews, three of whom suffered 4 bumps. But to read more about M1’s week, and all other boat club matters, click here https://www.facebook.com/SelwynCollegeBC or here https://selwynrowing.wordpress.com.

A number of the blade-winners from M1 were among alumni and friends who attended an open day at our new Boathouse on Sunday June 12^th. The photo shows Marcos Gallego and Nigel Coburn (centre).

More than 100 people came to the EU referendum debate held in Selwyn’s Chapel on Friday May 27^th. It was a passionate contest between the ‘Remain’ and ‘Leave’ sides, but conducted in a friendly spirit and with none of the personal attacks that have been part of the national campaign. Speaking on the pro-EU side of the argument were Sir Stephen Wall, a Selwyn alumnus who was the UK’s representative at the EU; Belinda Brooks-Gordon, representing Cambridge In Europe; and graduate student Genevieve Simpson. Opposing them were Simon Heffer, the journalist and historian; David Campbell-Bannerman MEP; and former MCR president Josh Maher. Speakers from the floor included undergraduates James Martin and Theo Demolder, along with a number of alumni and Friends of the college. Listen here to the whole 90 minutes of debate:

The result was a victory for ‘Remain’, who received 77 votes – against 19 for ‘Leave’. 14 people abstained. The photo below shows Simon Heffer and Stephen Wall outside Chapel after the debate, along with the broadcaster James Naughtie (centre) who did an excellent job as chairman.